


I'll Be Riding Shotgun

by lavieboheme0919



Series: Shotgun [1]
Category: Teen Wolf (TV)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Road Trip, Anxiety, Based on a Tumblr Post, Drinking Games, Hitchhiker Stiles Stilinski, Hotel Sex, M/M, Panic Attacks, Skinny Dipping, Tooth-Rotting Fluff
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-08-08
Updated: 2019-08-08
Packaged: 2020-08-11 19:42:34
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 5,801
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20159035
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/lavieboheme0919/pseuds/lavieboheme0919
Summary: Based on the gifset of the same name by HDHaleOriginal text of the post:After an argument with a friend, Stiles drops off a group road trip and has to hitchhike home to Beacon Hills. When a rugged man in a classic convertible and a cowboy hat pulls up, he’s rescued at last. Stiles charms his way into Peter’s car and- after a couple of nights of cheap motels and dumb driving games- right into Peter’s heart.They decide to take a detour and spend their summer on the road, returning just in time for Stiles to resume his studies in the fall.





	I'll Be Riding Shotgun

**Author's Note:**

  * For [HDHale](https://archiveofourown.org/users/HDHale/gifts).
  * Inspired by [I'll Be Riding Shotgun](https://archiveofourown.org/external_works/505681) by HDHale. 

"Oh thank God you're not a mirage," Stiles gasped as he entered the ramshackle gas station. The sign out front said "Last gas station for 200 miles." The desert heat had threatened to bake him alive. At one point he thought he saw some vultures circling over him. The man behind the counter barely acknowledged his presence, even as he put a bottle of water from the cooler and a $5 bill down. He looked at his cell phone. Not a single bar to be seen. "No chance you could call a cab for me?" he asked hopefully.

"Here's your change," the man replied, answering Stiles' question.

"Thanks," Stiles said flatly. He twisted off the cap and brought the opening of the bottle to his lips. After several hours in he heat, it was the most refreshing thing he had ever experienced. He gulped down the water faster than he intended, before caressing his forehead with the side of the bottle, allowing the condensation to drip down his face. _Jesus Christ, how the hell am I going to get back to civilization?_ he thought.

Stiles had never been a religious person. He was far too logical and enjoyed gray areas way too much. He thought he might have to rethink his sentiment toward religion, however, as he watched an antique blue convertible speed out of what seemed like nowhere, screeching to a halt next to the gas pump.

The man opened the door and climbed out. He was a bit taller than Stiles, but well-muscled. He had neatly-trimmed scruff and angular features. His white v-neck shirt went well with his white pants and the cowboy hat that worked to keep the sun out of his gorgeous blue eyes, and Stiles found himself unable to force his eyes away from the man's ass. "Fill her up with the highest octane you've got," the man said.

There was such an air of authority about him that Stiles simply did as he was told, despite the fact that he was certainly not employed by this establishment. As Stiles worked on filling the man's tank, he forced himself not to stare.

"Where you headed?" Stiles asked.

"Little town in Northern California. You probably haven't heard of it," the man replied.

"I'm from Northern California," Stiles said.

"Oh? Well do you know where Beacon Hills is?"

Stiles' eyes widened. "That's where I'm from!" he exclaimed.

"No shit!" the man grinned. "Small world. Just one question, though… and I mean no offense, but why leave there to work at a place like this?"

Stiles could feel himself growing hot and he knew it had much less to do with the desert heat and more to do with the fact that he was turning a shade somewhere in the vermillion family. "I… uh… I don't actually work here."

The man shifted his weight and cocked his head, clearly confused. "But you're filling up my car."

"Yeah…" Stiles said slowly. "Because you told me to."

"Do you always do whatever strange men tell you to do as soon as they tell you to do it?" the man asked, raising an eyebrow suggestively.

"Not usually," Stiles replied. The pump indicated that the car was full so he returned the nozzle to the hook. "I just have a thing for cowboys, I guess."

The man grinned. "Well I appreciate it," he said as he climbed into the car and touched his hand to the brim of the hat, as a way of greeting.

Before the literal white knight of his dirtiest fantasies could drive off, Stiles mustered up the courage to call out, "Hey cowboy!" that got his attention. "Wanna give me a ride?"

"Yeah, I do," the man said with a wink. He reached over and opened the passenger door, allowing the boy to get in. As soon as Stiles was in the seat and the door was closed, the man let the engine roar to life and threw it in gear, speeding off down the dusty two lane road.

After a few minutes of silence, the man asked, "So didn't your parents ever tell you about getting into cars with strangers?"

"You're right," Stiles replied. "I guess some introductions would be in order. I'm Miecyslaw, but you can just call me Stiles.

"Hello, Stiles… I'm Peter."

"And just like that, we're no longer strangers!"

The next hour or so passed in relative silence. Stiles alternated between tapping his fingers to a beat that existed solely in his head and allowing the air to move his hand up and down as they continued to speed down the road.

The silence was broken by Peter asking, "Are you always this quiet?"

"The opposite, actually," Stiles answered. "But I'm so grateful you gave me a ride, I don't want to annoy you."

"Trust me," Peter said. "I'll let you know if you get to the point of annoying me. So tell me… what were you doing at that gas station in the middle of nowhere?"

Stiles pushed the heels of his hands into his eyes before running his long, nimble fingers through his hair. "My best friends and I went on this little road trip to celebrate graduating high school. We were gonna go down to Mexico, but I kind of got into a bit of a fight with one of them and bailed. I didn't think that far ahead and literally almost died just getting to that gas station."

Miming as though he were writing something on a pad of invisible paper, Peter said, "Makes great life decisions…. Check."

"The only one I punished by it was me, though," Stiles continued. "All my life, I've never been outside of Beacon Hills. I was about to go spend a couple weeks in Tijuana! Now I get to spend the entirety of my summer at home… doing nothing until I go off to college in the fall."

"Well it sounds to me like your friends were being assholes, too," Peter said.

They continued on with mindless small talk for the next several hours of the ride, until the sun began to dip below the distant mountains, painting the sky with a palette of purples, reds, and oranges.

Noticing a sign, Peter said, "There's a town up ahead. We're gonna have to stop for the night, if that's okay."

Stiles nodded as he stifled a yawn. "Sounds good to me."

The only hotel in the small town was a run-down seedy looking thing called the Hotel Glen Capri. The vacancy sign had three letters burnt out. "This looks like the kind of place you book by the hour," Peter muttered under his breath as they both climbed out and headed to the front desk.

A severe-looking woman greeted them with no warmth in her voice. Stiles got the feeling she had some assumptions about the nature of their relationship. "The only room we've got is a one bed," she told them. Peter looked back at Stiles uneasily. "There's a couch in each room, though, so one of you can take the couch if you want."

Every muscle in Peter's body seemed to relax at that moment. "We'll take that room, then." He took out his credit card and slid it to the woman before signing some papers and receiving the key.

"I can give you money for the cost of the hotel," Stiles said as they approached the car to move it closer to where their room was.

"Don't worry about it," Peter waved him off.

The bed in the room would have been less uncomfortable if it had been a slab of lumpy concrete, but Stiles was so tired, he didn't care. He collapsed backwards onto it before looking over at Peter, who was thumbing through local guides, trying to figure out if there was any food they could grab the next morning.

"We can share the bed," Stiles said. "I mean, if you wanna come join me." Peter glanced over at Stiles, one eyebrow raised as the boy added, "Pants optional." This addition prompted Peter to raise his other eyebrow. "What?" Stiles asked.

"Are you trying to pay me with sex?" Peter asked.

"No!" Stiles exclaimed. "Dude! I just want your dick."

Peter exhaled. "Well, that's alright," before sliding off his pants and climbing on top of the younger man.

Peter's lips first made contact with Stiles' jaw, moving down to his chin, then up to the soft pink awaiting mouth. Peter delicately placed several more kisses on Stiles' lips before his tongue ventured into the younger man's mouth. When he finally pulled away, Peter exhaled softly once more. "I've been wanting to do that since the gas station."

"I'm sorry I kept you waiting so long," Stiles grinned.

Peter leaned back on his legs and pulled the v-neck shirt up over his head, tossing it casually onto the floor before pulling Stiles back upright. He began fiddling with Stiles' shirt, trying to pull it up.

"You can't wait to get me naked, can you?" Stiles teased.

As if in answer, Peter ripped open Stiles' shirt, annoyed at how long it was taking to remove. Stiles yelped in protest. "Dude… that was my only shirt! I don't have any other clothes!"

"I'll lend you one of mine until I can replace it," Peter promised before pushing Stiles back onto the bed. Stiles sized the moment to flip them over so that he was now on top of Peter. He put Peter's hands against the head board and held them there. Peter was much stronger than he was, so he knew that Peter was only allowing himself to be "pinned" because he enjoyed it. Instead of laying kisses down Peter's neck and shoulder, Stiles left little bites. Peter gasped pleasurably. "Oh, you're being very naughty, Stiles."

Stiles put his mouth next to Peter's ear. "I guess you'll just have to spank me, then."

Peter grinned devilishly. "Be careful what you wish for." He reached up and landed a strong swat on Stiles' left ass cheek, leaving Stiles momentarily stunned.

"Take off your underwear," Stiles said breathlessly.

"Only if you get completely naked, too," Peter replied.

Stiles' hands immediately shot to his pants, working diligently to unfasten the button and unzip them. He had to climb off the bead momentarily as Peter slid off the designer underwear he had on and added them to the growing pile of clothes strewn across the small hotel room. Stiles took in the sight of Peter's fully nude form. "Are you a model?" Stiles blurted, feeling suddenly self-conscious.

"No," Peter replied, smiling humbly. "But thank you." He could sense Stiles' uneasiness so he quickly closed the distance between them, helping the younger man finish that final step before he, too, was nude. He allowed one hand to snake its way to the back of Stiles' neck and the other to gently caress the side of the boy's face as he kissed him deeply. "You're so fucking sexy, Stiles," he breathed once the kiss parted.

* * *

Despite how uncomfortable the bed was, Stiles slept soundly with Peter's arm snaked around his waist, their bodies tight against one another. Stiles didn't hear Peter get up from the bed, but he did feel the older man gently shake him awake. "I got coffee," Peter said softly.

"That is the sexiest sentence in the English language," Stiles grunted, his eyes still not open.

"We've got to check out and get back on the road. Want me to run the shower for you?"

"Yeah." Stiles forced himself upright. He didn't have to look in the mirror to know that his hair was wild. His eyes scanned the room for the aforementioned coffee. He saw the two cups sitting on the small table. Peter came out of the bathroom as he reached for it. "They're both black. I wasn't sure how you took yours."

"As black as my soul," Stiles replied bringing the cup to his lips. The hot, dark liquid filled his mouth, warming him from the inside. It took a few moments to realize that he was naked. Though they didn't have sex, they had everything short of it. Peter had even mentioned that Stiles had given him the best blowjob he'd ever received.

"The water's warm," Peter told him before stealing a morning kiss.

The first few minutes of the shower found Stiles simply standing there, replaying the previous day's events in his mind. All of this was so far out of the norm for him. Not only had he hitch-hiked with a man who could have walked right off the cover of GQ, but he had also shared a hotel and gotten to third base with the man.

He finished washing and turned off the water before grabbing a towel and drying off. He noticed an outfit hanging in the bathroom that he didn't recognize. A sticky note said "Sorry I ripped your shirt. Here's a replacement outfit. -Cowboy"

Stiles smiled broadly as he pulled on the clothes. They fit him perfectly. Peter let out a wolf whistle as he exited the bathroom. Stiles pretended to walk the runway, striking poses along the way before he hugged Peter tightly. "Thank you so much. It's really nice."

"You're welcome," he said. "It looks great on you." After Stiles released the hug, Peter continued. "I've packed everything up. I'm gonna go turn in the key and we can get going."

"Sounds good, I'll be waiting shotgun in the car," Stiles replied, causing another smile to brighten Peter's already handsome face.

When Peter finally got back in the car, he chuckled. "I think the front desk lady thinks you were my prostitute."

"If that's the case then you most certainly did not get your money's worth," Stiles laughed in response. Peter put the car into reverse and pulled out of the spot.

"So now that we know each other better," Peter began as they pulled back onto the highway, "are we gonna ride in silence like we did yesterday?"

"What did you have in mind?"

"Car games, of course! Let's start with I Spy." Peter looked around for the first item. "I spy with my little eye… something that is green."

Stiles looked around a bit. The area they were in was mostly desert and had a distinct blend of browns and grays. He strained his eyes a bit to see one lonely cactus off in the distance. "Is it the cactus?"

"Bingo!"

"Alright. I spy with my little eye something that is blue," Stiles said.

"That's easy. The sky."

"Nope."

"The car?"

"Nope."

Peter squinted. "Is there water nearby?"

"Nope!"

After twenty minutes of Peter rattling off every possible item in sight that could be even remotely misconstrued as blue, he gave up. "Okay what is it?"

"Your eyes," Stiles replied.

"What a cheese ball," Peter replied. They continued playing the game until stopping for lunch at a roadside diner that boasted "The Best Cheeseburger in all of California!" They ate in relative silence, taking a few moments to try to toss French fries into each other's mouths before Peter paid the bill and they got back in the car.

"Let's play Never Have I Ever," Peter suggested.

"You know that's a drinking game, right?"

Peter pointed to the To Go cup of soda they'd taken from the diner. "So we'll modify the rules a little. I'll start. Never have I ever… hitch hiked."

"Not fair!" Stiles protested, but took a sip of his soda nonetheless. "Never have I ever cheated on an exam."

Peter didn't drink either. They kept playing for hours. The sun had set and they were driving through a heavily wooded area when Stiles said "Never have I ever skinny dipped."

Peter didn't drink. In truth, both were out of anything to drink, anyways. Instead, though, Peter cocked his head a little. "We could go… if you want."

"Really?"

"Yeah, we're not that far from a lake right now. Do you want to?"

"Hell yeah!" Stiles exclaimed, causing Peter to laugh.

They pulled off the road a few miles up and down a dirt path that Stiles had no idea was even there. The headlights shone on the lake and Peter stepped out of the car. "Alright… skin to the wind!" Peter pulled off his shirt, shoes, socks, pants, and finally, his underwear. He gently placed all of them in the driver's side of the car. Stiles followed suit, doing the same thing.

The day had been hot and the water was comfortable. Not too hot, not too cold. Slowly they waded into the dark water.

"Is this safe?" Stiles asked.

"Yeah. I actually used to come to this lake with my family when I was a kid. During the day it's pretty busy but the water is crystal clear," Peter answered. Peter proved himself to be a decent swimmer, making long graceful movements in the water as he circled around Stiles.

Stiles worked on his backstroke for a few moments as he got used to the sensation of the water against his skin. He then moved closer toward Peter. Despite Peter's claims the water was safe, he didn't want to be too far away from the shore.

They moved back closer to where they could touch the bottom of the lake and Stiles wrapped his arms around Peter's torso, pressing his face into the older man's chest. "Thank you for this," he said softly. "For everything."

"You're welcome," Peter replied, returning the hug tightly as he felt their naked bodies pressing against each other. "What are you planning to do with the rest of your summer once we get back to Beacon Hills?"

Stiles shrugged, still holding Peter tightly. "Wait for the school year to start so I can go off to college."

"That seems like a terribly boring way to spend your summer."

Stiles pulled away a little. "I don't really have any other options. Most of my cash I sunk into my share of the trip that I bailed on. Another adventure just really isn't in the cards for me."

Peter exhaled as he looked up at the sky. There weren't many clouds and he could see the dazzling stars surrounding the tiny sliver of the crescent moon. This was entirely new territory for him. He had always prided himself on being a lone wolf. But with Stiles, it was different.

He loved seeing the boy smile—especially if he put the smile on Stiles' face. He liked learning new things about him. He wanted to make more memories like skinny dipping. He wanted to be the summer fling story that Stiles told his friends later in life. He wanted to be the reason Stiles got drunk during future games of Never Have I Ever. He braced himself for the suggestion that came to his lips. "What if we had an adventure together…. Before going to Beacon Hills, that is."

"What do you mean?" Stiles asked.

"We could go see the places you've always wanted to see. Do the things you've wanted to do. You can have your big adventure before going off to college," Peter offered. His heart raced as he waited for Stiles to consider it.

"What about when I start college?" Stiles asked. "What happens then?"

"I don't know," Peter admitted. "I guess you'll probably meet more people your age and go on adventures with them."

The darkness hid well the sadness on Stiles' face that Peter was considering the end of the summer to be the end of their adventure. As if to answer Peter's original offer, Stiles kissed him deeply on the lips. "Where we headed first?"

"I was thinking we could go get you some clothes and luggage and then make a list. We've got just shy of three months and we can cover a lot of miles in that time," Peter replied.

"I don't have a whole lot of money for this, by the way," Stiles said cautiously.

"Don't worry about that part," Peter told him. The began to wade their way back to shore and stood around, allowing the gentle breeze to dry them. Stiles watched as Peter's body was silhouetted by the bright headlights of the car.

"Hey Peter," he called. The older man stopped walking and turned around as Stiles ran toward him and jumped into his arms, circling his legs around Peter's waist. Both men laughed as they kissed each other.

Once they were fully dry, they put their clothes back on and got back in the car. Stiles leaned his head against Peter's shoulder as they drove through the pitch black, finally stopping once they reached a town. Peter found a decent hotel and went in to request a room.

The bed on this one was more comfortable. "You should call your parents," Peter said after a few minutes.

"Parent," Stiles corrected. "It's just my dad. My mom died when I was a kid." Stiles braced himself for the usual response: "I'm so sorry that happened." To his shock, Peter didn't reply with that.

"That sucks," Peter said sincerely. "That must have been really rough on you." The response from the older man seemed so genuine that Stiles appreciated it all the more. He hated when people apologized, as if they had something to do with it.

"We managed," was all Stiles replied as he fumbled through his pockets to pull out his phone. It was nearly dead. He tapped his father's name and the phone began dialing. He knew it was late, but he knew his father and that he'd be awake.

"Hey!" came the voice on the other end.

"Hi dad," Stiles replied.

"Did you guys make it to Tijuana?"

"They did," Stiles said. "Based on Instagram, they're having a great time. I bailed. Scott was being kind of a dick so I changed my plan a bit."

"Oh?"

"I know what's behind that 'oh', dad!" Stiles said. "I'm with a friend and I'm safe. Did you think I'd hitchhike back with the first cowboy that passed my trail? Come on, dad. You know me." He struggled to maintain a straight face as he said it. Peter grinned devilishly.

"Well, keep me posted," his dad said. "And have fun. I love you."

"I love you too," Stiles replied before hanging up the phone. He looked up to see Peter still grinning. "What?"

"You just…" Peter paused as he searched for the word. "You amaze me."

"Amaze you how?" Stiles asked.

"I haven't figured that out yet," Peter admitted.

* * *

Their second night together was more intense than the first. Stiles was left contemplating the fact that he'd now had sex with the man who had offered to pay for their entire road trip. He questioned if he did it because he really liked Peter and the sex was amazing or if he felt a sense of obligation now that he'd accepted the offer that had been made at the lake.

He gazed upon Peter's handsome face through the small beam of yellowish light sneaking its way into the room through the gap in the curtains. He tried to think about whether or not he would have still gone all the way with Peter had the offer not been on the table. It didn't take him long to conclude that he probably would have because he _did_ really like Peter. Their conversation at the lake replayed itself in his head over and over. He analyzed every word.

Peter expected him to move on after this summer was over and find someone new to date once college began. But three months was a long time to spend with just one other person, especially if he was going to be sharing a hotel bed and presumably having sex with that person regularly during that time.

Slowly he sat up on the bed. He could feel his brain starting to spiral. If Peter was the one who set the expiration date of their relationship, did that mean that he only wanted this to be a summer fling? Was this a Call Me By Your Name situation? Was he the Elio to Peter's Oliver?

He felt his heart start to race as he moved to his feet, pacing back and forth to expel the nervous energy. _You've only known him for a couple of days,_ Stiles told himself. _Yeah, he's funny and sexy and _damn_ good in bed, but you don't really know much about him. This is all pre-mature. _He tried to let his rational brain prevail, but more dread sank in. What if he fell in love with Peter during the course of the summer but Peter didn't feel the same? Should he distance himself and try to prevent himself from developing feelings for the older man? Was Peter even preoccupying himself with similar thoughts?

He felt it getting harder to breathe. He stayed still for a moment, trying to figure out if the room was spinning or if he was dizzy from the pacing. The room was definitely spinning. Having suffered from them his whole life, Stiles recognized the signs of a panic attack. He raced to the sink and began to splash cold water on his face. The noise roused Peter.

"Stiles?" he called groggily from the bed. "Are you okay?"

"Yeah," Stiles replied, but even in the one syllable, his voice was shaky enough to tell Peter that the opposite was true. The light flipped on and suddenly Peter was standing right behind him.

"What's wrong?" Peter asked softly, placing his hands on Stiles' shoulders and rubbing them gently.

"I think I'm having a panic attack," Stiles managed.

"What do you need from me?" Peter asked. "What helps you to come down from them?"

Stiles drew his hands up to his face. "I don't know," he said, exasperated.

"Stiles, I want you to focus on me," Peter said. His voice was calm and steady. "Tell me five things in the room that you can see."

"My reflection," Stiles replied, his eyes darting around. "The curtains, the bed, the TV, and the sink."

"Great," Peter said. "Now tell me four things you can feel right now."

Taking a deep breath, Stiles focused on his sense of touch. "I feel the water on my face, the carpet under my feet, the counter top I'm leaning against, and your hands."

"Okay, now how about three things you can hear?"

"I hear you breathing," he began. "I hear the air conditioner, and I hear cicadas outside."

"Okay now tell me two things you can smell."

"The bar of soap on the sink and your cologne."

"And now tell me one thing you can taste."

Stiles took a few more deep breaths. "I can still taste your mouth from when we kissed earlier." By that point, Stiles could feel that the panic attack had mostly passed. He turned around so that he was facing Peter. He looked up into the piercing blue eyes that were studying him carefully. "Thank you," he said before hugging his travel partner.

Peter kissed the top of Stiles' head and rubbed his back as he returned the hug. "You're welcome," he replied. Peter pulled a bottle of water from the mini fridge and handed it to Stiles as he guided the younger man back toward the bed. "Do you want to talk about what started it?"

"Yes," Stiles replied after taking a long gulp from the bottle. "But also no…. I'm not sure."

"Those would be the three answers," Peter replied patiently.

Stiles smiled. "If I ask you something, will you respond honestly?"

"Of course."

"I was thinking about something you said earlier at the lake. You said that once I started my semester, I'd find someone my own age. You made it sound like once our adventure is over, that's it. Why?" Stiles asked.

It was Peter's turn to take a deep breath. It saddened him that something he said had caused the panic attack. "Because you're 18, Stiles. I'm double your age. You have so many more experiences ahead of you and I would never want you to miss out on them. Besides, in three months we may be so sick of each other that we never want to see one another ever again."

"But what if we're not?" Stiles asked. "Yeah, that may be possible, but what if the opposite is true and after three months of driving around and seeing amazing sights, playing stupid car games, having sex in hotels, and sharing intimate details of our lives with one another, we realize we want to have more adventures? What do we do then?"

"Stiles, I like you… and I'm not one to generally like other people. In fact, I hate pretty much everyone on matter of principle. And you're right, I don't know what the future has in store for us so I'm sorry if I put an expectation that was hurtful or unfair in any way. But I think that having any expectation of what we are and where we'll be by the end of the summer is dangerous to what we have now. Let's just enjoy our summer together and enjoy each other and let whatever is going to happen, happen."

* * *

The next day started out more slowly. They slept in and got a late breakfast before venturing out and doing some shopping for luggage and clothing for Stiles. Once they'd picked out a wide variety of outfits, they stocked up on snacks for the road and wrote down a list of places Stiles wanted to see. That list included the La Brea Tar Pits, the redwood forest, Joshua Tree, the San Andreas Fault, and Disneyland.

They decided that these five places were an absolute necessity and they could add other places as they thought of them. They also decided that games of Never Have I Ever would be fair game for adding additional experiences to the list.

Stiles snapped a photo of himself kissing Peter's cheek. He'd done it as a surprise attack and as he looked at the photo, it struck him how widely Peter was smiling in reaction to it. "Can I post it on Instagram?" he asked.

"Yeah," Peter replied. "Let's add a bunch of hashtags and make your friends really jealous."

The petty, spiteful part of Stiles loved that suggestion. #RoadTrip #RidingShotgun #Summer #Adventures… it went on.

Each time they stopped, they took photos of each other. Some were candid, some were posed. Stiles posted all of them and made sure to add the #RidingShotgun to each one.

By the time they finished their first week together, they were pretty much out of ideas for Never Have I Ever. They played the license plate game, the alphabet game. Their game of punch buggy was turning into a game of chicken. Neither was willing to admit that the other's punches hurt like hell. Instead, they were always met with some variation of "You hit like a bitch."

Their days were spent on the road or seeing sites. Their nights were spent in hotel rooms, always sharing a bed. Some mornings they showered together, continuing their love making from the night before.

They crossed every item off their list and added more, completing the addendum multiple times over. People commented on their photos, noting how happy they looked and how much fun they were having.

As August came to a close, however, they began in earnest their trek back to Beacon Hills. By that point they had been to Seattle and gotten coffee at the first ever Starbucks store. The colors in the trees were starting to turn just a little, the first sign that summer was coming to a close.

A pit grew in Stiles' stomach. As they drove, he interlaced his fingers with Peter's. He was fairly certain they were boyfriends by this point, but he wasn't completely sure. He leaned his head against Peter's shoulder. The rain beat down on the windshield as Peter drove through the winding roads. "We're almost there," he announced as a sign approached telling them that Beacon Hills was only 50 miles away. "Beacon Hills. Here we come." Stiles squeezed Peter's hand tighter.

Once they reached the city limits, Stiles gave directions to his house. His dad was at work when they arrived. Stiles sat in the passenger seat for a few moments after Peter cut the engine. "What now?" he asked after the silence became unbearable.

"I don't know," Peter admitted.

"I know I have to go to college and I know you had a life before you dropped it to drive me all over the West Coast, but I don't want this to be goodbye," Stiles admitted. He let those three words remain unsaid.

Peter inhaled deeply through his nostrils. "I don't want to distract you from whatever greatness you're meant to achieve, Stiles. I wouldn't be able to forgive myself and I wouldn't be able to stand it if you resented me for keeping you from anything."

Stiles felt the tears stinging at his eyes. They spilled forward as he blinked.

Peter held Stiles' face in his hands, wiping the tears away with his thumbs. "Don't cry, please," he said, a little too desperately. "You are so amazing, Stiles. I am so excited for everything you are going to do with your life and I have loved every second we've been together."

"Then why end it?" Stiles asked simply.

"You deserve more than me, Stiles. You deserve the moon and the stars and I know I won't be able to give those things to you."

"I never asked for those things," Stiles replied. "I don't want them. The only thing I want, you have the power to give."

"You shouldn't ride shotgun through your own life, Stiles. You need to be in the driver's seat for that."

"Then I'll take the wheel. I'm a pretty good driver. My dad's a cop."

Peter couldn't help but to smile. "Fine, you win."

"Never have I ever…" Stiles began.

"Stolen a man's heart?" Peter finished.

"Pshh," Stiles said, waving off his comment. "We both know that I have. Never have I ever said 'I love you' to someone who wasn't related to me."

Peter didn't reach for the bottle of water in the cup holder. Instead, he pulled Stiles' face to his and kissed him more passionately than ever before. When the kiss finally ended, both men needed to catch their breath. "I love you," they told each other in unison.

Peter helped Stiles bring his luggage inside. Stiles wrote down his semester schedule and when the holiday break would be. "I think we can fit a little adventure in there," he said. "I'll even drive."

Looking at the paper, Peter grinned. "I'll be riding shotgun."

**Author's Note:**

> I absolutely fell in love with the gifset this is based on and I strongly recommend you check it out. It was absolutely masterful editing and I'm grateful to HDHale for giving me permission to write this. It's the first thing I've written in a while. A very close friend of mine (who was a huge part of my writing process) passed away in October and I've not really been able to write much since. But when I saw the gifset, it began to pour out of me. If you haven't already, please show HDHale some love!
> 
> Please let me know what you thought of the fic and if I missed any tags! Thank you so much for reading!


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